The Hon Jason Clare MP
Minister for Education

The Hon Dr Anne Aly MP
Minister for Early Childhood Education
Minister for Youth

The Hon Kristy McBain MP
Member for Eden-Monaro

Every day in Eden-Monaro, parents trust early childhood educators with the most important thing in their world, which is why the Albanese Government is supporting some of our most important workers.

The Government is investing $3.6 billion to deliver a 15 per cent wage increase for Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) workers.

This will be phased in over two years, with a 10 per cent increase from December 2024, and a further 5 per cent increase from December 2025.

It will see a typical ECEC educator in Eden-Monaro, who is paid at the award rate, receive a pay rise of at least $100 per week – increasing to at least $155 per week from December 2025.

Since coming to Government, the number of ECEC workers has grown by more than 30,000, but we need more.

This commitment will help retain our existing early childhood educators, who are predominately women, and attract new employees.

It will also put downward pressure on fees, ensuring families in Eden-Monaro can access quality, affordable ECEC.

To be eligible to receive funding for the wage increase, ECEC services won’t be able to increase their fees by more than 4.4 per cent over the next 12 months.

This significant wage increase is an important next step in the Government’s reforms to the sector, building on the successful Cheaper Child Care changes, which have already benefitted 4,400 families in Eden-Monaro. 

As part of these reforms, the Government is considering the Productivity Commission’s final report into early childhood education and care and will release it in due course.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Education Jason Clare:

“The child care debate is over. It’s not babysitting. It’s early education and it’s critical to preparing children for school.

“They lift our kids up and now we are lifting their pay.

“This is the cost-of-living double whammy – wages up for workers and keeping prices down for families.

“A pay rise for every early childhood educator is good for our workforce, good for families and good our economy.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Early Childhood Education Dr Anne Aly:

“This is a wonderful outcome for a highly feminised workforce that has for far too long been neglected and taken for granted.

“We’re boosting the wages of early childhood education workers, while relieving cost of living pressures on Australian Families.

“Properly valuing the early childhood education and care workforce is crucial to attracting and retaining workers and vital to achieving the quality universal early learning sector Australian families deserve.

“A quality early childhood education sector is necessary to support children's learning and development as well as workforce participation in the broader economy.”

Quotes attributable to Member for Eden-Monaro Kristy McBain:

 “Having access to quality, affordable early education is incredibly important for families in Eden-Monaro, which is why this investment is a win for workers and a win for families.

“This will mean early educator workers in Eden-Monaro will receive a 15 per cent pay rise, without the costs being passed onto families.

“More than an extra $100 per week from December 2024, increasing to over $150 per week from December 2025, will help retain our existing early childhood educators, but also support attracting more educators to the sector.

“I’ll continue working with communities across Eden-Monaro to advocate for strengthening early education – for families and our educators.”